Max Mosley wins £60,000 in News of the World privacy case

Max Mosley: accused the News of the World of a gross invasion of privacy. Photograph: Carl Court/PA

Formula one boss Max Mosley today won £60,000 in his privacy action against the News of the World after the Sunday tabloid had falsely accused him of taking part in a "sick Nazi orgy".

Mosley, 68, the son of the 1930s British fascist leader Sir Oswald Mosley, sued the Sunday tabloid paper for grossly invading his privacy after it printed pictures and published video of him indulging in a five-hour sadomasochistic sex session with prostitutes in a Chelsea apartment.

He failed in his bid to seek an unprecedented award of punitive exemplary damages, but the £60,000 damages are the highest in recent legal history in a privacy action.

In his judgment Mr Justice Eady said that Mosley had a "reasonable expectation of privacy" in relation to his sexual activities no matter how "unconventional".

He found no evidence of Nazi themes in the orgy and said Mosley's life had been "ruined".

"I found that there was no evidence that the gathering on March 28 2008 was intended to be an enactment of Nazi behaviour or adoption of any of its attitudes. Nor was it in fact. I see no genuine basis at all for the suggestion that the participants mocked the victims of the Holocaust," Eady said.

"There was bondage, beating and domination which seem to be typical of S&M behaviour.

"But there was no public interest or other justification for the clandestine recording, for the publication of the resulting information and still photographs, or for the placing of the video extracts on the News of the World website – all of this on a massive scale.

"Of course, I accept that such behaviour is viewed by some people with distaste and moral disapproval, but in the light of modern rights-based jurisprudence that does not provide any justification for the intrusion on the personal privacy of the claimant."

Eady added: "It has to be recognised that no amount of damages can fully compensate the claimant for the damage done. He is hardly exaggerating when he says that his life was ruined."

Both Mosley and News of the World editor Colin Myler were in attendance in a packed court 13 at the Royal Courts of Justice to hear the judgment.

Neither reacted when Eady read out his judgment.

The paper had alleged the session had "Nazi overtones", but Mosley - the president of the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile) - strenuously denied this in court.

The News of the World's informant, known as Woman E, was not called as a witness for the paper because of what the paper's QC, Mark Warby, said was her "emotional and mental state".

News of the World had argued that there was no basis for punitive damages, because the newspaper believed what was written and that it was legitimate to publish.

Mosley's counsel, James Price QC, argued that compensation for intrusion of privacy should be greater than those for defamation "because invasion of privacy can never be repaired and the claimant has to live with it for the rest of his life".

The case, which has made headlines around the world, saw Mosley give evidence about how the allegations had caused his wife and family great distress, while the News of the World editor, Colin Myler, defended the paper.

It is thought the £60,000 in damages awarded against the News of the World is a record in a privacy case in recent legal history.

Actors Catherine Zeta Jones and her husband Michael Douglas were awarded £14,600 against Hello! magazine in 2003 after it published unofficial pictures of their wedding, while model Naomi Campbell won £3,500 against the Daily Mirror in 2004 after it printed a photo of her leaving a drugs counselling session.

Recent out-of-court settlements have included £37,500 to actor Sienna Miller from the News of the World and £58,000 to actors Hugh Grant, Liz Hurley and her husband Arun Nayar.

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